SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The San Diego County Water Authority today announced its full support
for Senate Bill 866 (Wolk/Steinberg) and Assembly Bill 1471
(Rendon/Atkins), companion $7.545 billion state water bond measures that
would fund critical new water supply development and large-scale water
infrastructure projects important for the future of San Diego County and
all of California.

The water bond was the product of negotiations led by Gov. Jerry Brown,
Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins, and Senate President Pro Tem Darrell
Steinberg. The Water Authority has been working for months to address
the San Diego region’s priorities for a water bond. If passed by the
Legislature and signed by the governor, the proposed bond would replace
an existing bond measure on the November ballot.

“Governor Brown, Speaker Atkins and Pro Tem Steinberg are to be
congratulated for undertaking the grueling work necessary to craft the
right water bond that is also right for our times and the state’s
finances,” said Thomas V. Wornham, Chair of the Water Authority's Board
of Directors. “We thank Speaker Atkins and all of our San Diego County
legislators for their diligence in ensuring our region’s water supply
and priorities are met by this measure.”

The Water Authority has long advocated for a water bond that reflects an
emphasis on local and regional water supply development. That is the
model that the San Diego region has employed for more than two decades
to improve regional self-sufficiency, become more resilient to drought,
and reduce dependence on the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay-Delta.

The water bond contains substantial competitive funding opportunities
for the San Diego region to pursue and advance meaningful local and
regional water supply development, including:

Chapter 9 would provide $725 million for water recycling and advanced
water treatment technology projects – including potable and
non-potable reuse and seawater desalination projects – for which San
Diego County water suppliers could compete.

Chapter 6 would allocate $475 million to help fulfill state
obligations, including mitigation and restoration obligations at the
Salton Sea as part of the Colorado River Quantification Settlement
Agreement of 2003.

Chapter 7 would allocate $52.5 million to the San Diego funding area
for local and regional Integrated Regional Water Management projects.

Chapter 7 would provide $100 million for water-use efficiency projects
for which San Diego County water suppliers could compete.

Chapter 6 would allocate $17 million to the San Diego River
Conservancy for important land conservation, open space, habitat,
wetlands, and water quality improvement opportunities in the San Diego
River watershed.

Of the funds that are regionally allocated within the water bond, the
San Diego region would be specifically allocated nearly 9 percent of the
total, an equitable and proportional funding allocation.

“Every issue raised by the Water Authority over the course of the past
several months has been satisfactorily addressed in the final version of
the water bond,” Wornham said.

The San Diego County Water Authority is a public agency serving the
San Diego region as a wholesale supplier of water from the Colorado
River and Northern California. The Water Authority works through its 24
member agencies to provide a safe, reliable water supply to support the
region’s $191 billion economy and the quality of life of 3.1 million
residents.